John George Bowes was a businessman and political figure in Canada East

Canada East

Canada East was the eastern portion of the United Province of Canada. It consisted of the southern portion of the modern-day Canadian Province of Quebec, and was primarily a French-speaking region....

.

He was born in Clones

Clones

Clones is a small town in western County Monaghan, in the 'border area' of the Republic of Ireland. The area is part of the Border Region, earmarked for economic development by the Irish Government due to its currently below-average economic situation...

, County Monaghan

County Monaghan

County Monaghan is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Monaghan. Monaghan County Council is the local authority for the county...

, Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

 around 1812 and came to Upper Canada

Upper Canada

The Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...

 in 1833. He worked for his brother-in-law in York (later Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

), then opened a dry goods business with another brother-in-law in 1838. He was president of the Toronto and Guelph Railway and also served on the board of directors of several other companies. In 1850, he was elected to city council and he was elected mayor in 1851 to 1853. During his term as mayor, Bowes was involved in a scandal related to profit made on stock for the Toronto, Simcoe & Lake Huron Union Railroad (later the Northern Railway

Northern Railway of Canada

The Northern Railway of Canada was a historical Canadian railway located in the province of Ontario. It was eventually acquired by the Grand Trunk Railway, and is therefore a predecessor to the modern Canadian National Railway.- Early history :...

) that also involved Francis Hincks

Francis Hincks

Sir Francis Hincks, KCMG, PC was a Canadian politician.Born in Cork, Ireland, he was the son of Thomas Dix Hincks an orientalist, naturalist and Presbyterian minister and the brother of Edward Hincks orientalist, naturalist and clergyman.He moved to York in 1832 and set up an importing business...

. Although he was cleared of any charges, Bowes was forced to pay the profit that he had made to the city. In 1854, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada

The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the legislature for the Province of Canada, which consisted of the former provinces of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East and later the province of Quebec, and Upper Canada, then known as Canada West and later the...

representing Toronto. He was elected to city council again in 1856 and served as mayor from 1861 to 1863. He died in Toronto in 1864.